Iraqi insurgent gains pose challenge for U.S.

June 12, 2014 8:26 AM

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WASHINGTON — In a series of stunning defeats for Iraqi government forces, radical militants moved closer toward Baghdad on Wednesday, seizing key cities and confronting President Obama with a fresh foreign-policy crisis.

The Pentagon said battling the militants is the responsibility of the Iraqi security forces, reflecting the administration's determination to keep ground troops out of Iraq, which they had helped stabilize after more than eight years of war.